


Swipe Right

by Anonymississippi



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Alex is a pining mess, F/F, Social Media AU, Swearing, dating apps, drinking wine (like a lot of wine), facebook stalking, general danvers monthly
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-24
Updated: 2017-11-24
Packaged: 2019-02-06 09:15:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,388
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12814389
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Anonymississippi/pseuds/Anonymississippi
Summary: When Alex discovers that Astra has created profiles for different dating apps, there's just one thing to do. Create a profile so she can match with her herself.A Social Media/Dating Apps AU





	Swipe Right

**Author's Note:**

> y'all i'm bringing it so far back to basics I'm putting pics in here because I LOVE HER OKAY

Agent Alex Danvers was rarely caught of guard. Highly trained in all things Weird, with a degree in the Advanced Science of the Inexplicable, and more accustomed to Frequent and Unnecessary Explosions by virtue of certain familial connections, nothing really surprised her anymore. She rolled with the punches. Anticipated and debriefed. She prepared with a soldier’s thoroughness, and took her superior’s directives in stride. So for the newest Interesting Development to happen so consummately, so blatantly before her over the course of a month, or two months, even, without her notice, had Alex realizing that while she was quite good at recognizing and distancing herself from alien-involved situations on a professional level, she was rather terrible at keeping apace of alien happenings that interfered directly with her personal life.

Scratch that: _especially_ when alien happenings interfered directly with her personal life.

The news came on a Wednesday, an innocuous weekday many months after Myriad’s destruction, the Daxamite’s retreat, Lucy’s promotion, J’onn’s Martian engagement, and Astra’s defection. And it happened in the DEO cafeteria of all places, in a mish-mosh of black tactical gear and plastic lunch trays with overpriced granola parfaits and the questionable ground beef recipe. The suspect edibility of said cheesy-noodle mystery meat did not stop Supergirl from loading up two trays and trudging across the cafeteria, fork in hand, expression dazed and defeated, her cape trailing listlessly behind her.

Director-Major Lucille Lane from the DEO Desert Base was on assignment at the city base for the week observing SOP with Asst. Director Danvers, and both were engaged in fruitless and pathetic battle with paper napkins and individual packets of salad dressings for their wilted green salads. A distressed Supergirl cast a spiritless mood over the luncheon between friends. That, and Lucy Lane was currently losing her cutlery battle to a spork.

“Hey, Kara,” Lucy muttered, prodding dispassionately at a sprig of romaine. “How’re things?”

“Ugh,” Kara groaned, shoving her trays to the side and banging her forehead so hard against the tabletop the stand sunk an inch into the concrete.

“You’re paying for that,” Alex quipped.

“Add it to my bill.”

“What’s got you feeling not-so-super?” Lucy asked, stabbing and jabbing and mushing what was left of her salad into a vegetable smoothie. She took another glance at the stringy drippings, pulled a grimace, and cast the plate aside. “Remind me I need to review the meal allocations budget and see if we can divert any of that HVAC funding into another line item.”

“You work in a desert base,” Alex said. “You really want to risk going without A/C?”

“It’s a cave, Alex,” Lucy deadpanned. “It’s cool enough already. The food, on the other hand…” Lucy gestured to the trays before them. Even Kara was fiddling with her noodle concoction, more content to groan over whatever was ailing her than to actually shovel any of the goop in her mouth. “Even Kara won’t eat.”

“It’s not because the food’s bad,” Kara lamented, taking a forkful and stuffing her face with it. She chewed, miraculously, without rambling.

“Then what is it?” Alex asked. “You’re not still sad about Man-Smell, are you?”

“Alex—”

“Yeah, Kara,” Lucy encouraged her. “I mean, he sat back and let the invasion happen. Even aided and abetted, letting his mother go? And from what we’ve gathered, Astra’s troops had history with Rea, it’s not like she _meant_ for him to get caught in the crossfire…”

Alex doubted that, having caught Astra’s eye after that battle, having not had the courage to thank her for something Alex kinda wanted to do herself.

“’s nothing like that,” Kara said, taking another bite of macaroni meat. Lucy and Alex waited, checking emails on their phones, content with what might be considered “down time” in their line of work.

“’s weirder than that,” Kara said after a moment, eyes bugging slightly.

“Weird how?” Lucy asked, indulging Kara.

“Alien-weird or government-interference weird?” Alex asked.

“Alien-weird, I think.”

“Attack?” Lucy asked.

“Nothing so sinister,” Kara answered. “But I think I might… I’m just… I’m just confused, is all.”

“We can’t help you if we don’t know what you’re talking about,” Lucy added helpfully.

“I think my aunt…” Kara started, chewed on her lip, took another bite of macaroni. “I, uh, think she might… well, see, I would never judge, uhm, because it’s none of my business—”

“If it’s about Astra, it’s my business,” Lucy chimed in, and Alex didn’t know why that comment turned her stomach even more than her pathetic salad. She watched Lucy’s gaze narrow to what Alex called her _lawyer’s stare_ , all furrowed and suspicious and attractively analytical. “Anything wrong with the resident Kryptonian at my base?”

“It’s not work-related,” Kara answered.

“Then what is it?” Alex asked, sparing a worrisome glance across the caf, catching a brief glimpse of the Kryptonian in question as she approached the buffet line.

Ever since Kara had effectively transferred her super base-of-operations into the city with the rise of Cadmus, the desert base had been re-designed under Lucy’s command primarily as a training and holding facility. Astra was her right-hand as far as the training was concerned, because she didn’t yet have the clearance to run missions unless Kara really needed her help with containing the more exotic alien threats; plus, the distance from the city seemed to suit Astra’s less-than-tactful nature just as well as the relocation boosted Supergirl’s image in the National City consciousness. Supergirl was seen more, which was good for politics, good for CatCo, and good, in some round-about way, for the DEO.

Astra was not seen by the public at all.

(Also good).

It wasn’t that Astra couldn’t take up the mantle of superhero if the situation called for it. It was no longer a question of loyalties, not after Astra defected to the DEO once Indigo wreaked utter havoc with some bastardized version of Myriad. It wasn’t even a matter of discretion, of keeping a secret about yet another Kryptonian flying about in Earth’s atmosphere.

No, it was simpler than that.

J’onn and Kara wouldn’t admit it, but Astra was _painfully_ awkward. And not just in an (endearing) alien way. In an I’m-extremely-smart-and-beautiful-but-don’t-realize-what-that-could-mean-to-regular-mortals kind of way. In a, people-stare-at-me-in-the-supermarket-and-ask-for-contact-information-and-I-threaten-them-with-bodily-harm-while-questioning-their-intentions-and-food-selection kind of way. Supergirl had been branded with a patriotic wholesomeness bordering on the saccharine, but Astra… her history was too dark. She would most certainly be the edgy hero, mysterious, and therefore doubly sought-after, but her bluntness would be her downfall. She wasn’t made for adoration, even thought the public might want to give it to her. Astra was a soldier, first and foremost, so excessive praise wouldn’t sit well with her.

Alex knew all of this, because she’d talked to Astra about it.

Multiple times.

In multiple locations, alone on the phone, together over coffee, somehow always running into each other at work or at Kara’s or in the midtown neighborhoods. Astra seemed to have mapped her morning running route, always joining up with her somewhere in the park around mile two, enjoying the silent company. They would chat while Alex caught her breath and cooled down, and Astra would be off just as soon as she appeared. Little instances of contact like those allowed Alex to learn the curve of Astra’s lip, the rhythm of her gait, the occasional sarcasm in her commentary, and the flavor of her wit. It seemed as if, completely by accident, Astra had become one of her closest friends.

Alex felt comforted for some reason that Astra hadn’t quite settled into her world on Earth as much as Kara had hoped she would. Because that meant Lucy was frequently keeping tabs on Astra out there in the desert, giving her plenty of work to keep her occupied. It meant that Alex signing Astra up for Blue Apron was a good move, because less middle-aged men hit on her at the supermarket. It meant that their morning runs and occasional meet-ups for coffee and meals and conversation could continue, just as they had for the past six months.

Kara was busy.

Lucy had just gotten a promotion.

J’onn and M’gann were planning the equivalent of a Martian wedding.

And Alex?

She found time during her routine to help out Astra when she could. She was technically family, after all, so it was almost expected of her. And if she got to know Astra a little better in the process, then so be it. And if Alex subsequently heard all about Astra’s forays into human interaction, and if Alex felt compelled to step in on Astra’s behalf, out of a sense of _familial duty,_ then she would.

It was normal to want to check in on Astra.

Normal to want to help her.

Normal to feel a sinking feeling in her gut when Kara mentioned something going on with her aunt with the beautiful grey eyes and a stunning lack of a personal life.

Completely normal.

Like… perhaps Alex had a major crush normal.

Right.

Kara groaned once more before slapping a hand over her face, mumbling through her fingers: “…I think my aunt might have a, uh—a _sex_ problem.”

Alex spat her drink across the table in the same instant that Lucy dropped her spork.

“ _Alex!_ What the hell?!?” Lucy screeched, grabbing paper napkins and dabbing at her shirt.

“Sorry, I just—uh,” Alex felt it happening even as she tried to stop her neck from rotating, but no, she could never stop _looking_ at her, gravitating toward that damn woman like space junk cartwheeling into a black hole. Alex quickly found Astra across the cafeteria and scanned her from booted heel to the crown of her head, trying not to linger over the Kryptonian jumpsuit-of-sexiness for longer than was appropriate in the DEO cafeteria.

“Uh…” she stuttered again, attention turned back to her lunch and cheeks aflame. “That’s just, uh… we are talking about _Astra_ , right?”

Kara cocked an eyebrow. “I don’t have another aunt here, Alex.”

“No, I know that, I just… she’s…”

Astra was nodding effusively at Janet near the drink station, gesticulating wildly at the paper napkin dispensers, likely going on about waste and the environment. It was one of Astra’s favorite topics of discussion whenever she happened into restaurants. Alex knew this, because Alex was usually the one who took her to restaurants.

Janet backed away slowly, clearly uncomfortable with the conversation. She nearly ran into a chair in her attempt to escape the steely-eyed Kryptonian. Astra wasn’t giving up though, or reading any of the apprehensive social cues Janet was throwing her way. Astra gave chase, following Janet to her table, whipping out a sheet of paper so quickly Alex had to wonder if she sped out of the caf to get it from another office.

“…she’s _awkward_ , Kara,” Alex said.

“She’s not awkward,” Kara argued.

“She’s not awkward around us,” Lucy corrected. “And she’s really not awkward around Alex.”

“What?”

“ _What?!_ ”

“…what?” Lucy asked, eyes flicking back and forth between the pair of them. She sighed once again, tearing into a packet of butter crackers. “She’s been cooped up with crazy criminals, and no offense, Kara, but your dearly departed Uncle Non didn’t look like a champ between the sheets—”

“They should offer brain bleach at the drink station,” Kara resumed her groaning, head down, arms crossed before her, doing her best to avoid drilling the table any further into the floor.

“It’s been nine months since the battle at Rozz. What’s the harm in her getting a little action?” Lucy asked.

“Lucy, please, don’t encourage her.”

“Why not, Alex?” Lucy turned, eyes bright like a viper. “Why do _you_ have any say in whether Astra gets laid or not?”

“I… I, uhm, don’t,” Alex quickly answered. “It’s just—like I said, and like what you implied, Luce, she’s fine around us because we know the circumstances. But around other people? People she picks up in bars—”

“Oh, it’s not bars,” Kara grumbled from beneath her arms. She popped her chin up on top of the back of her hands and blew a lock of hair out of her face. “It’s every dating app this planet has seen fit to create.”

“Dating… apps?” Lucy asked.

“You mean to tell me Astra is on… Tinder?” Alex asked, fingers twitching, but quelling the urge to whip out her phone and reactivate her account.

“Tinder, Bumble, OK Cupid, Coffee Meets Bagel, J-Date, Happn, Plenty of Fish, Elite Singles—”

“She’s on _all_ of those?” Alex asked, trying to pick her jaw up off the table.

“She’s swiping and typing at all hours,” Kara groaned. “She lives two doors down from me and I _never_ spy through the walls, but she’s definitely brought them back to her apartment. I tried for movie night, but she's got a date every night this week! Plus, I think it's more than one person a day, it has to be... she doesn’t always come home until—”

“Wait, they know where she lives?!” Alex exclaimed. “Kara, that could be—”

“All-powerful Kryptonians, Alex,” Lucy said, placing a calming hand on her forearm. “Think before you speak.”

“But don’t you think it’s a little weird that Astra is dating half of the eligible bachelors in National City?” Alex huffed.

“Bachelors, bachelorettes, my aunt doesn’t discriminate, apparently,” Kara said.

Alex wasn’t sure if her cheeks could turn any redder, or if the heat creeping up her neck was noticeable from afar. Lucy’s shit-eating grin was the epitome of smug, but Kara seemed too worked-up over her sex-starved Kryptonian relation to pay any mind to Alex’s misery. Alex kept her mouth shut for the duration of lunch, adding in non-committal noises when necessary, fingers itching to pull her phone from her pocket and hurl herself into the rabbit hole that comprised internet dating in National City.

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

“Are you sure we have authorization for this search?” Winn asked for the third time in fifteen minutes, typing in one final bracket to complete the search code. “It just doesn’t seem like it has anything to do with official DEO business—”

“Who’s the superior officer, here?” Alex challenged. “We just need to make sure Astra is flying under the radar. She’s a Kryptonian, Winn. This isn’t the same as Kara’s short-lived stint on Match.com. She knew what she was getting into.”

“And Astra doesn’t?”

“Astra once threw a trainee through a forty-story window because she thought the experience would cure him of his vertigo.”

“And did it?”

“Undetermined, the trainee dropped the program the next day.”

Winn brought his hands up in surrender, twisting back to the monitors in his rollie-chair. “Listen, you’re putting me between a rock and a hard place here. I just don’t know if I want to—”

“I can also throw you out of a window if you don’t do this for me, Winn.”

“SO CAN ASTRA!”

“But Astra would probably catch you,” Alex pointed out.

“ _Probably_?!”

“I can’t fly, and can’t make any promises.”

“Fine,” Winn said, moving for the final, ominous keystroke. “Here. It’s localized to my monitor. Have at it, cyber-stalker.”

“Thank you, Winn,” Alex said, pushing his chair out of the way so she could scroll through the photos.

And wow.

Holy hell.

Astra.

Just…

_Damn_.

So it could be worse, though how it could be worse, Alex couldn’t quite figure yet. But even in the most action-packed, precarious situations, when the world was going to hell all around them on missions, there were always instances where the mission could be worse. And this wasn’t a mission. This was just… checking up… on an investment.

Right.

Astra was an asset to the DEO, and if any of these… _people_ broke her heart, then her work would be compromised. So Alex was most certainly NOT mad about how much Astra smiled in the photos, or how she had _two_ pictures with this one guy, who was tall and dark and handsome and had nice eyes in a conventionally attractive sort of way. And she wasn’t mad that Kara was right; Astra didn’t seem to discriminate in her dating of the sexes, but there was no way Alex could compete with the woman in aviator sunglasses, blonde and chic-looking with actual angel wings for hair.

 

Astra’s selfies and photos were interspersed with somewhat insightful bits of commentary about her personality and one too many smirky face emojis for Alex’s taste. Where Kara had gotten the _sex_ thing though…

Alex skimmed the remaining portions of her profile and her stomach sank.

_Astra Ze *shooting star emoji*_

_Female._

_Bisexual._

_Military veteran._

_36 years old. Brunette, grey eyes, and I like vanilla ice cream._

_Here for all the right reasons ;)_

_*wine glass, ice cream cone, bicep curl, smirky face, check mark, paper and pencil emojis*_

There was nothing in her profile that indicated that she was an alien, for instance, and a noticeable lack of photos with Kara, even though Kara and Astra both were enamored by those dumb animal Snapchat filters and only had a bajillion saved to their selfies’ albums on their phones. And speaking of selfies…

Fuck, Astra had posted a full-body black-and-white mirror selfie in that damn Kryptonian jumpsuit-of-sexiness, and there was a photo from some… was that a party? With _Lucy_??? How the hell had Lucy even made it to—what the fuck, was that _Winn_?!

“Winn!” Alex barked, clicking on the damning evidence before her. Winn looked happy in his business casual attire and Astra was hanging off the arm of some blonde stranger in a red dress that made her look more approachable than her DEO wear did. “What the hell is this?”

“What?” Winn asked, looking up from his sandwich. There was a smear of orange sauce on his lip and shredded sour kraut drooping out of his mouth.

“Get over here!”

“’m eating!”

“What’s this picture from?” Alex hissed, thumbing over her shoulder at the monitor.

“CatCo thing,” he muttered around another bite.

“What ‘CatCo’ thing?”

“Supergirl was being honored a few months ago,” Winn said, slurping on a Big Gulp. “Astra wanted to go.”

“So you took her?”

“More like she took me,” Winn said, swiping at the crumbs that had gotten caught in the bottomless crevasse that was his chin cleft. “She didn’t give me much choice in the matter. Just asked for event details and if I could get her in so she could watch Kara.”

“She crashed the party?”

“She was an inconspicuous guest, didn’t draw any attention beyond the… well, she and Kara have this, uh…” Winn worked his jaw, trying to come up with the right way to say ‘unearthly beauty’ without getting smacked in the face. “They’re just Kryptonian. They draw attention even when they don’t mean to. Astra was perfectly well-behaved and got to see Kara’s award. It wasn’t a big deal.”

“Do you know any of these—” Alex hesitated over the word ‘dates’. “—people?”

"Nah, sorry,” Winn said, returning to his sandwich before pausing in thought. “The sunglasses pose a problem with the lady, but I could run some searches with facial recognition software around the city if you’d like.”

Alex thought about it.

Perhaps it was a good idea, maybe just the lady with Angel hair and tall, dark, and handsome… there were several photos of each floating around Astra’s various dating profiles. No hurt in a standard background check, familial history search, review of finances and sensitive personal information. Like addresses. Definitely addresses. She needed to know where these people lived, and if Astra was emerging from their homes in the early hours.

She had no ulterior motives whatsoever. It was for national security, after all.

“Just these two people, Winn,” Alex said, pointing out their faces. “I don’t want to pry any more than is necessary—”

“Yes you do.”

“This is a matter of _national security_.”

“Keep telling yourself that, Danvers,” Winn grumbled, shoving the last bite of his Rueben into his face as he and Alex traded places. Alex swatted him over the head and took off to the locker room, ready to head home for the day and cyber stalk Astra the old fashioned way.

Drunkenly, on her phone, while hiding under a blanket and trying to keep microwaved queso dip and corn chips from dripping onto her sweatshirt.

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

She was four months deep on Astra’s Facebook page and cursing herself for accidentally liking a photo from when Astra moved into one of the apartments down the hall from Kara. Alex had been staring at it for nearly twelve minutes according to her clock.

In the photo, Astra held four boxes stacked in her hands, all loaded down with undoubtedly heavy materials, but looking weightless and empty for the relative lack of exertion she exhibited. Her hair was pulled back in a low, loose knot, and it was outrageously curly. That white stripe slid over her shoulder and accentuated the curve of her jawline and the regal tilt of her head. She wore civilian clothes; dark skinny jeans, black booties, and a hunter green sweater. She was laughing at something Kara had said, and there were balled-up pages from _The Tribune_ and _CatCo Magazine_ scattered about on top of Astra’s kitchenette bartop. It was a small, utilitarian space, but there was lots of light and it shone on Astra in that picture like a spotlight on a stage star. She looked warm and happy and beautiful and Alex should have said something then, before all of this Internet dating nonsense gave her a stomach ulcer.

She should have dated her like a normal person, instead of… doing… whatever the hell she was doing.

Alex took another big gulp of wine and shook her head, trying to clear her addled thoughts.

Astra had every right to date. _Every right_. Alex never said anything, not a word, which led her to this: cyberstalking on a Thursday night by herself while someone else was probably on a date with Astra.

And that made Alex want to punch something.

She went back to her double bottle of $18 Cabernet. She’d just polished off her ~~fifth~~ fourth glass of the night, which probably inspired her trigger-happy response with the ‘thumbs up’ icon on that damn picture.

Besides the wine, and the Facebook and Insta stalking, Alex reactivated or created profiles.

Lots of profiles.

Low-key profiles, to be certain, but ones with her photo (usually with sunglasses on), a line about her job as a scientist working for the Feds, and an interest in motorcycles, running, and target practice. And she left what profiles she could in the nebulous ‘inactive’ categories, but she needed access to the damn sites to actually see Astra’s records without resulting to rudimentary hacking skills Winn had taught her one night when they’d both been tipsy at M’gann’s bar. That was the night Alex felt bold enough to sidle up behind Astra to help her line up her pool shot; the night Astra subsequently launched the cue ball through the far wall once Kara caught them standing so close, having just returned from the bar.

Alex only lived about two miles away from Kara, so she narrowed her distance preferences to a five mile radius, and started the dreaded swipe search. Left, left, left— _holy hell, was that person dressed in a Gumby outfit?—_ left, left, left, left…

And so it went for an hour and a half; Alex continued to drink and tried not to disregard the tightness in her chest every time she pictured Astra leaving a bar or restaurant with someone that wasn’t _her_. And to see some of the options on these apps? To each their own, but frost tips and neon kilts and dead animals and very questionable hygiene practices could be found in a surprising majority of the photos on Tinder.

Alex just couldn’t believe Astra, beautiful, intimidating, brave, stern, sarcastic, smart, amazing, powerful, strategic _Astra_ , would result to flame emojis and hook-ups.

Hadn’t they grown closer over the last few months? Didn’t Alex catch Astra staring, just like Astra always, _always_ caught Alex staring? Lucy even called Alex out for her frequent visits to the desert base, wondering how many PT trainings Asst. Director Danvers of the city unit really needed to oversee, no matter if Astra was leading the demonstrations that day or not.

And yeah, Astra was awkward, and alien, but she wasn’t obtuse. Alex kept her cards fairly close to her chest in front of Kara, Lucy, J’onn, etc., but there were… moments… just these little instances with Astra over coffee, or at the shooting range, or that one day while sparring in the Kryptonite training room, when Astra had her pinned, and Alex had zero desire to get up, not when Astra was breathing so hard, and her hair was hanging down, and one hand had her wrists pinned and the other squeezed her throat just hard enough to—

“Shit,” Alex muttered, having swiped right on some nobody that she wasn’t even paying attention to.

If _Riley_ with the heart emojis actually matches with her, she could always disconnect later. That’s not what this was about.

But what happens when she actually runs across Astra’s profile? Was it really about seeing it for herself, to believe Astra had resorted to these stupid apps when she had her number already, knew where she lived, knew her coffee order and her morning route and her favorite alien phaser gun?

Was she supposed to swipe right?

And if she did…

What if Astra didn’t swipe right on her?

She could chock it up to logic. Her profile was sparse. Her pictures were bad. She hadn’t crafted anything that she really wanted other people to notice. It was for Astra.

Funny, how she kept saying that over and over again, about different decisions that had never needed that consideration before:

_Saving that seat?_

It’s for Astra.

_Game night at the apartment?_

Make sure to invite Susan, too, that way Astra has a partner if Kara wants to play with Alex or Lena this time.

_Why does Alex have seven gallons of ice cream?_

She only needs one, but Kara and Astra go crazy for this stuff.

_Why hasn’t she been dating anyone recently?_

Because when Astra looks at her, her stomach flops and her cheeks flush and she feels like she’s never misjudged someone so true and beautiful before.

_Why is she creating dumb dating profiles and swiping her way through half the eligible population of National City?_

Because she’s in love with Astra.

“Oh, shit.”

Astra’s profile. Same pics. Same bio. More emojis than Alex would ever give Astra credit for. Honestly, Alex had better pictures of Astra on her phone. She knew Astra better than any of these strangers did (which is the point of online dating, but Alex was firmly determined to put logic aside). Astra should… she should be with her.

Alex took a deep, calming breath.

She swiped right, put the phone down, and resolved to deal with it in the morning. For now, she needed a bath, and to finish that bottle of wine. Because tomorrow she was going to put on lip gloss instead of Chapstick. She was going to don her nicest leather jacket and ride out to the base in the desert early to catch Astra before her shift, and she was going to ask that woman out on a date. If Astra saw her profile tonight, swiped right, and they matched, Astra would see it coming.

If she didn’t, then it would just be a pleasant surprise.

Or so Alex hoped.

She grabbed the bottle and shuffled into the bathroom, determined to rid her mind of Astra and the dozens of people falling in love with her in and around National City.

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

Alex was still stubbornly mulling over Astra’s bio twenty minutes later in the bathtub. She was going emoji-by-emoji, trying to puzzle out what each stood for. The wine glass and ice cream cone were fairly obvious, but the paper/pencil and the check marks kept her grumbling in the suds. Was Astra trying to check things off of some alien bucket list as far as dating went? Male or female, various races, religions, ice cream preferences? Was she trying to… oh god, was it really a _sex_ thing, like Kara said? It might explain the smirky face and Rosie-the-Riveter muscle flex emojis, and definitely supported Astra’s penchant for strenuous physical activity. But blowing through multiple partners _in a night_ just didn’t seem to match Astra’s M.O., not what Alex knew of her anyway.

She submerged herself to get the suds out of her hair and blew bubbles out of her nose, the gurgling echoes pounding off the sides of the tub and rattling her head. But when she broke the surface with a gasp, the pounding echoes didn’t stop.

Nope.

Even a little wine-drunk, Alex could definitely make out the patterned beats of something banging against her front door.

At 10:47 p.m.

On a Thursday.

While she was naked.

“Shit,” she muttered, her refrain of the evening.

It took her longer than she wanted to get out of the tub, her buzz rendering her movements sluggish. She wrapped herself in a towel and ran a hand through her soaking wet hair as she bolted to the door to see if it was someone she could simply send away; who the hell came knocking on her door this late besides Kara (who was tied up at the CatCo offices as per usual)? She looked through the peephole, and of-fucking-course—

“Alexandra?”

“Shit,” Alex knocked her head against the door.

“Alex, good evening, it’s Astra, I—I apologize for the late hour.”

Things were hazy through the tiny hole in the door, but Alex could see that Astra was all done up, or… sorta… somewhat done-up? There was a leaf sticking out of what might once have been some fanciful curls and a handful of papers Astra was shuffling in front of her, doing her best to get them in order.

“Astra hey, I’m… uh, indisposed.”

“You’re indi—” Astra narrowed her eyes at the door and then looked immediately at the floor, x-ray vision of Alex-in-a-towel likely not on her list of things to ogle that night. “Oh, oh! I just—uhm, I need only two minutes of your time, please.”

_Well fuck_.

Alex unlatched the chain and undid the deadbolt to find a flushed, windswept Astra standing before her, looking for all the world like a femme fatale from a forties black-and-white movie: loose curls and dark red lipstick and a short black dress, black stockings, black heeled booties. It had most certainly been date night and Astra had most certainly… left?

To come… here?

“Hey, yeah, what can I help you with?” Alex said, too tired and bummed out to think about Astra getting all dolled up for someone else.

“Why did you not respond to my messages?”

Alex blinked twice and tried to re-focus, seeing now that Astra was flushed not because of any make-up, but because she looked distressed.

“What?”

“On the Tinder Application, you… you and I matched,” Astra said, fingers holding onto the stack of papers before her like some sort of alien lifeline. “And so I messaged you because… because you have not indicated your desire to seek companionship through the digital sphere, and I wanted to warn you—”

“Wait, _you_ wanted to warn _me_? Astra, please,” Alex said, rolling her eyes toward the ceiling. “Aren’t you the one who’s on a dozen different dating websites? And Tinder? Seriously? You could do so much better than that.”

“I was trying… I… I can explain, if you’d just—” Astra made a motion over Alex’s shoulder and so Alex stepped aside, allowed Astra in, and closed the door behind them both. Astra clicked her way in on those boots that added another two inches of height to the difference they already shared, forcing Alex to crane her head up to look at her properly. She got a little dizzy, and decided falling back against the front door was a good idea as far as support went. She huffed out a grunt and shut her eyes.

“Alex!”

“What?” she snapped, hand at her temple, trying not to act rude. Trying not to act hurt. Trying to act like Astra hadn’t done anything wrong, when she really _hadn’t_ done anything wrong, Alex was just an anxious pile of nerves and apprehension, staring at the object of her affection after two too many, coming to the sad realization that she could never have her.

“What’s wrong with you?” Astra asked. “You do not look well.”

“I had some wine earlier. It’s late and you know I’ve got my run… ‘m tired, that’s all.”

“But you weren’t tired enough to go to bed earlier,” Astra caught her, eyes glistening under the kitchen lights. “You went about your day as normal, and yesterday when we were on your run you never said you… you never said you were planning to…” Astra couldn’t get whatever it was she was trying to say out of her mouth. Alex knew the feeling. She also knew that Astra looked hurt, and confused, and a little nervous, too. But _why_? Why especially, when Astra spoke up again, this time with some bite in her tone: “You had enough energy to create a profile on Tinder.”

“I just reactivated an old one. It doesn’t require that much effort,” Alex grumbled.

“And so you swiped through your preferences, correct?” Astra asked, standing with her hands flat on the countertop, the pile of papers resting ominously between them. Her eyebrows shot up her forehead and she pursed her lips, quite obviously holding some nasty sentiment back. “Why did you suddenly create an account when you have never… Lucy never said you dated casually. She was so wrong, I cannot believe I listened—” Astra cut herself off and her hands balled into fists. “Why would you suddenly create those profiles when you’ve never shown interest in such things before?”

“Maybe because I didn’t know the person I was interested in was on those dating apps,” Alex answered, wondering, vaguely, if she’d just said that out loud. “Did I just say that out loud?”

“Yes…who are you interested in, Alexandra?” Astra asked her, shoulders sloping, the tendons in her neck loosening from that straining worry she’d exhibited upon entry into the apartment. “Please, Alex, if you could just tell me—”

“You know,” Alex said, shaking her head, chewing the inside of her jaw, unable to fathom why a rock had chosen _this exact moment_ to lodge itself in her trachea. “You know,” Alex choked out again, hating that she was tearing up for no fucking reason.

This was so _stupid_. Exactly why she didn’t do _feelings_. Because sooner or later, she was going to get drunk, make a dumb decision, and blow up at the person who deserved it least:

“I’m interested in _you_ , Astra, and then I come to find out that you’ve signed up for seventeen thousand dating websites and are out every night, with multiple people, and it tears me up inside that I didn’t take the chance to just… to just kiss you while I had you right in front of me.”

Her cheeks felt warm and she heard Astra gasp, but she couldn’t stop, not now that the cat was out of the suffocating bag:

“It tears me up that you’re swiping left and right on those screens and other people are with you, and I’m not. And other people get to talk to you, and laugh with you, and hold you. And they don’t know you, they _can’t_ know you like I do, cause there’s not one single thing in your stupid profiles that tells them about Krypton, and all the shit you’ve had to work through. Because if they could see even half of what I see every fucking day, it’s a miracle all of National City hasn’t dropped to one knee in front of you because that’s how amazing you are. You’re better than some face behind a screen swiping left. You’re better than… you’re better than all of it!”

Alex hiccupped and brought both hands up to cover her mouth, her face, turning down so that Astra couldn’t see the humiliation overwhelming her. Her shoulders and neck and chest and face were surely as red as Krypton’s sun, and her eyes felt hot and wet and she was so embarrassed, and mad at herself for being embarrassed, and really just wished the floor of her apartment would open up and swallow her whole and put her out of her misery in one fail swoop. She wrapped her hands aroun dher torso in hopes that her shoulders would stop shaking.

“Alexandra.”

Alex heard Astra move closer, but she just stared at her pruney, bare toes.

“Alexandra, I have a report for you,” Astra said, tilting Alex’s chin back up with one hand, clutching her papers in the other. “I left an engagement rather abruptly to retrieve it, and would appreciate your review of the material.”

Alex couldn’t say anything. She could only look into grey eyes that changed to green, to lavender, to aqua and clearest blue without any explanation. She could only stare at Astra, who was staring at her. Astra moved so very close to Alex, close enough to reach for her, to place her hand on the faded blue of the towel at Alex’s hip.

The warmth of Astra’s hand on her hip blazed through the material. The strength lingered there in the bones of her fingers, in the slightest, most minuscule pressure against the concave slope of Alex’s side. There was no way in hell she was reading a report, not with Astra so close, touching her, not laughing at her or leaving immediately or shouting at her about how ridiculous she was acting. Nope. Alex was content to stay in this spot and not move and just memorize the few seconds Astra spared, touching her like she cared.

“Alex, darling.”

Alex’s head snapped up so quickly Astra had to tilt back a bit, a smile emerging on her face. “Would it be terribly confusing if I confessed that I began to see other humans—people, so that _you_ would want to be with me?”

“Yes,” Alex nodded, because even though Astra wasn’t running away, she was still… dating other people? “That seems rather counter intuitive.”

“Perhaps, but I couldn’t get them to fill out the surveys otherwise.”

“I’m sorry,” Alex whispered, mesmerized by the way Astra’s voice grew raspier and deeper, standing so close. “Surveys?”

“The report, I mean,” Astra said, taking a step back and withdrawing her hand, leaving Alex stupidly perplexed.

“Here,” she passed over the papers. “I was only able to create a sample population of 52 initial respondents, a dozen who had seen me at least 2 times, and 2 people who can testify to prolonged interactions with me. I was hoping to reach 500 eligible individuals, to have a substantial sample population from which to draw my results.”

“I’m sorry… 8.3? What scale are you even—oh my god.”

Holy shit.

Alex mentally traveled back to that moment two days ago at the cafeteria, where she had asserted that Astra was _awkward_.

Perhaps that was putting it lightly.

Because Alex was now standing in her kitchen, clutching a half-completed report, titled: “A Romantic and Social Analysis of Astra In-Ze: A Compilation of Responses Gauging the Positive Outcomes for Dating a former Kryptonian General.”

“You… were surveying how, uh, _dateable_ you were?”

“Yes,” Astra confessed, taking the papers from Alex and setting them back atop the counter. “I was hoping to appeal to your scientific need for verification.”

"You, uhm..." Alex looked down at the report, skimming some of the headings. Though the page that held any notes on 'physical intimacy' was suspiciously blank. "So you didn't sleep with any of these people?"

"Rao, no!" Astra said, staring down at the report, aghast. "I wasn't about to--I didn't intend to fornicate with half of the city just to get a positive report. Don't you think that would skew the results?"

"Not if that's what you were asking for feedback on, and they were trying to be... uh... objective?" Alex finished, showing her the paper with the heading.

"This is, well, it's obviously not complete," Astra said. "Some of these columns are sparse, because I found myself unable to pursue such courses of action with many of the candidates I met. There were one or two who were very kind, friendly even, but I just... I couldn't bring myself to spend more time than was necessary with so many. My thoughts always returned to you."

"And you thought appealing to 'science me' was the best way to go about this?"

"'Science You' is very becoming, and perhaps the most critical part of your personality," Astra confessed, her cheeks turning red this time.

“What about my basic human need for companionship and affection?”

“You have never expressed your desire for companionship or affection, which, I understand that you most act in accordance with professional standards at the DEO, but I find, from my own observations, that you are anything but basic. I felt I could not…” Astra approached again, and this time, Alex opened her arms to her.

She was _holding_ Astra, touching her shoulders, her hair, letting her fingers travel up the side of her face to softly, slowly, trace along her cheek bone and back. Astra smiled, no—she _beamed_ back at her. She wrapped her up so securely that, aside from flying with Kara, Alex had never felt safer.

“Alexandra, you are exceptional, and intelligent, and beautiful, and brave, so… so brave.”

“And you thought the best way to convince me to be with you—”

“—was to show you that other humans had found me at least somewhat pleasant. I know I am not… I am not easy to love, Alexandra.”

“Shut up,” Alex muttered, standing on her tiptoes and finally, finally leaning into Astra. “You’re perfect.”

Alex never planned on prancing around in the buff for her first kiss with Astra, or anyone, for that matter. But the only woman she’d really given any consideration to kissing in the relative future was, in fact, Astra; so to be in a towel, sucking on Astra’s upper lip, while Astra pressed her back into the wall, was a rather daunting situation for Alex to have found herself in after previously feeling utterly devastated.

The emotional extremes of the night were giving her brain whiplash, but she couldn’t find it in herself to stop Astra from touching her. Something about the wine made her far more daring than she might have been when clear-headed—she paid no attention to the drooping towel when Astra’s hands were scratching at her back, and she didn’t feel the need to quell the moans a magic Kryptonian tongue elicited. Because Astra tasted like cinnamon and whimpered when Alex pulled her hair, and Alex had supposed Astra wanted everyone but her. It was too exciting to stop. It was everything she’d ever wanted. Fingers drew across a wide expanse of bare skin, breathy gasps escaped during every slide of their lips. It was too much and never enough and Alex was certain she was going to melt in Astra’s arms.

“Alex—”

“Astra, please—”

Astra made a grab for the towel and scooped Alex up, kissing her and cradling her form against her chest. She floated or walked or somehow transported them to Alex’s bed, where she pressed Alex back into the sheets and hovered over her, her kisses still consistent, but less heated, less scattered. Her pupils were blown and grey as she blinked down at Alex, smirking. She tilted away when Alex leaned up to kiss her again, diving down instead to do wicked things to the column of her neck.

“Your skin tastes like cookies,” Astra mumbled, nibbling at her neck. “Like my favorite ice cream.”

“Vanilla body scrub,” Alex answered, hitching a leg over Astra’s side, her hips canting into Astra’s mercilessly covered center, seeking friction. Astra groaned and grinded down into her, fitting their hips snugly together.

“Astra, please—”

“Alex,” she said, swirling her tongue along a tendon at Alex’s throat. Teeth, god, she scratched her teeth down her neck hard enough to leave a mark but Alex didn’t care, Astra was _kissing her in her bed_ and she never wanted anybody else. Astra had dated to prove how date-able she could be, all for Alex. Her alien. Her awkward, kind, perfect General.

Alex’s fingers dug into the back of Astra curls, and she shuddered on top of her.

“Alex…” Astra murmured again.

“Yeah, uh… yeah?”

“I had not…” Astra pulled back and pushed some wet hair out of Alex’s face, hovering above her on her elbows. Her brows pinched together, concerned, and Alex immediately assumed the worst. “… I had no intentions of coming over here tonight.”

“Oh—okay,” Alex huffed, her towel-covered chest still rising and falling rapidly from the exchange. “Do you, uh, do you need to leave?”

“I did leave a date when you didn’t answer me,” Astra said, brushing her fingers along Alex’s hairline. Alex tensed, waiting for her to fly off into the night. “But I do not wish to go, if you would have me stay.”

“Oh, I—Astra, _obviously_ ,” Alex said, leaning up to peck Astra’s lips. “Of course I want you to stay.”

“Then may I have a spare shirt in which to sleep?”

“You want a—Astra, this was going, uh, I mean, I’m pretty naked, so…”

“You were also crying not ten minutes ago, and I see an empty bottle of wine on your bathroom floor. I have waited long enough to be with you, I want you sober to remember every—” Astra moved to kiss her neck again, and licked down toward her shoulder. “—single—” The tongue moved to her collar bone where Astra bit down, making Alex arch up against her. “—detail,” she finished, taking Alex’s bottom lip in between her own and sucking, twirling the tip of her tongue along the swollen flesh.

“You make a damn compelling argument,” Alex admitted breathily, reluctantly pressing up against Astra’s chest with one hand and grabbing for the useless towel that had separated them. She sat up, bringing the towel to her chest, but leaned in for one more kiss before rising and retreating to the dresser. Her head felt a little heavy, water-logged, even, as she stumbled slightly on her way across the room. The chuckle behind her alerted her that Astra had followed, and that she didn’t need to worry about Astra leaving again.

“Something funny?” Alex asked.

“Only my reaction to this entire affair,” Astra admitted, grabbing the old UCNC t-shirt Alex handed over. “I found myself insanely jealous the moment I saw your picture on the screen. I understand now I could have gone about it a completely different way.”

“Guess we were both too scared to say anything, then,” Alex commiserated.

“Quite.” Astra turned round and looked over her shoulder. “Will you unzip me?”

Alex put her hands on Astra’s shoulder blades before slipping them down to the back of the material. “Do you really need help? I’ve seen that convoluted battle suit of yours.”

“You mean the Kryptonian jumpsuit-of-sexiness?” Astra smirked, blinking back at Alex, whose hands had stalled in their work. “You and Major Lane forget I have super hearing.”

Alex continued with her job, cheeks heated, so she pressed her face into Astra’s neck from behind, and used the opportunity to slip her arms inside of the dress, to get handfuls of Astra’s skin. She tried not to let them wander, as much as she wanted to, but she needed to feel Astra pressed against her. Her knuckles brushed higher, catching the cup of Astra’s bra.

“Alex—”

“I know, I just… give me a second?”

Astra brought her hand up to the back of Alex’s hair and turned her head, pressing a kiss against Alex’s heated cheek. Alex ran her hands against Astra’s abdomen, snaking beneath the smooth black fabric she’d worn to some other date that night. They swayed together, rocking back and forth senselessly, a little high on the simple feel of each other. At least, Alex was. It was all so bizarre. Internet dating. Matches and emoji hearts and age preferences. Meanwhile, Astra had been right in front of her for the past year, in some way or another. She pressed a kiss to the smooth meld of Astra’s skin between neck and shoulder, lips running over an old scar, making a mental note to ask after it in the morning.

“Are you ready to sleep, Alexandra?”

“Hmm,” Alex answered, releasing her hold on Astra, drawing her hands back over her abdomen. She twisted away more abruptly than necessary, everything still fuzzy around the edges. Somehow she ended up with underwear and a t-shirt on, and so did Astra. Astra was gone, and then she was back, holding a full glass of water and an aspirin in her hand.

“Drink. Swallow,” she commanded, and Alex did as instructed.

“All of it, please.”

Alex rolled her eyes, but drank the rest of her water. By the time she was finished, Astra was already underneath the covers. Seeing Astra’s fingers curling, beckoning her to bed wearing her old college tee, was the stuff that comprised Alex’s wildest dreams. Head still buzzing, lips still tingling, she crawled over the mattress and snuggled into Astra, waiting on her to turn over.

She did no such thing.

“Turn over,” Alex pressed her shoulder.

“You turn over,” Astra argued, battling a yawn.

“Wanna hold you,” Alex murmured.

“You’re drunk.”

“'m tipsy.”

“Let me hold you, and we’ll trade another time.”

“You’re coming back?”

Astra brushed her hair out of her face once more, before pressing a goodnight kiss to her lips. “If you’ll have me.”

“Hmm,” Alex smiled and rolled over, sighing into the feel of Astra’s arm draped over her stomach, her head burrowed into the space at the crook of her neck. “I’m so happy it wasn’t a sex bucket list,” she whispered.

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> The biggest thing to take away from Alex's foray into dating via app, is that I was once on Tinder and saw a guy in a Gumby costume. if you don't know what that is, please give it a google
> 
> i was thinking of writing the nsfw morning after for these two to really compete the 'dating app hook-up' kind of fic, but i wanted to post this part to actually have a finished product for #gdmonthly
> 
> let me know if you're interested, and maybe i can work on the follow-up!
> 
> Thanks for reading, everyone!


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